Psalm 4:4, etc. - Bedtime Thinking

Have you ever had a nights when you can't fall asleep? Perhaps you wake up before the alarm goes off and you can't get back to sleep. 

It can be due to excitement about something positive, or worry about something troublesome. Perhaps it's thinking through everything that need to get done, or designing a solution to a problem. 

Solomon advised:
"Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted.
Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good."
(Psalm 127:1, New Living Translation)
"It is senseless to get up early
or to stay up late
just to put in long hours of work;
Because God gives to His loved ones, even while they're sleeping." 
(Psalm 127:2, my paraphrase)

A productive alternative to everything that keeps us awake is to think about God,
"When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches." Psalm 63:6 (New American Standard, 1995)

Better yet, talk with God. After all, we're encouraged to,
"cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7 (NASB95) 

Sometimes we end up in bed during the day, recuperating from sickness or surgery.
When David wrote, "Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still" he set no time limit as to what hours we might be in bed. (Psalm 4:4, NASB95) So if "bedtime" is getting tedious, as an alternative to staring at the TV or staring out the window, consider an alternative: simply enjoying being in God's presence. He's already right there!

Father, When we've finally slowed down enough to be alone with our thoughts, turn those thoughts toward you. Thank you that it's not a duty to perform, but we think about You and love You because in Your love, You are constantly thinking about us. In Jesus' name, Amen.